Tag: public-private partnerships

California– San Francisco is moving ahead with plans for a public-private partnership (P3) to build a city-wide fiber network that will encompass the almost 47-square miles of the city. The city has issued a request for information (RFI) for the project and also plans to select five proposals by April 30. The city will then issue a follow-up request by the end of the year for three proposals to enter into the design phase. Early estimates put the cost of the project around $1.9 billion.

The network would be owned by the city but built and managed as a P3 – an arrangement that allows the city to alleviate some of the costs and risks of creating a brand-new utility. The city would maintain significant control over the price consumers would pay if they sign up for the service. The new network is expected to include subsidized rates to close the digital divide for low income residents. Currently about 100,000 residents of the city don’t have internet in their home.

New Hampshire– Portions of the New Hampshire Turnpike system may soon be privatized. The state’s public-private partnership (P3) Infrastructure Oversight Committee have considered P3 plan for long-term concession agreements. The three highways chosen for the turnpike project were opened in the 1950s. The project includes developing and operating service plazas and rest areas with dining, fuel and retail concessions along the highways.

The P3 will allow for the sharing of resources to finance, design, build, operate and maintain transportation infrastructure projects. The plan was developed after Gov. Chris Sununu shared a proposal by the New Hampshire Department of Transportation to raise tolls on the turnpikes to accelerate completion of improvements to the roads.

California– Redondo Beach is embracing the Olympic spirit and pitching a design for a new water front Olympic venue for the summer 2028 games. The city originally wanted to build a venue to host water polo, swimming or boating events but the Olympic committee already awarded that project to Long Beach. Instead the city may become the site of cultural events, festivities or a training facility.

A newly formed city subcommittee will work on a formal proposal while city officials work on a bid to acquire a 51-acre site for a public-private partnership. The city envisions a 6-mile course that would start at King Harbor, run south along the coast and loop at the Palos Verdes Peninsula, with spectators watching from the bluffs along The Esplanade

Illinois– The city of Bloomington is deciding on a potential re-use for a building in the downtown area that an insurance firm is vacating. One suggestion for the 89-year-old structure is a new city hall, while others call for office space and light retail. While the exact designation is unclear the size of the building would make it a good fit for a public-private partnership (P3).

The insurance company is finishing up renovations on the building this month that include upgrading the lighting, cafeteria, restrooms, wiring and heating. The city plans to take up the topic along with a library-transit project at its upcoming city council meeting. The project would involve tearing down the Market Street parking garage and building a new library and transit hub in its place.